Professional Drummers Play and Offer Tips at Annual Workshop

d drum enthusiasts from across the area, Drumstock Spring Session 2011, organized by drummer Brad Kimes, was a resounding and reverberating success at Cypress Creek Marina.

Over 50 folks of all ages found their way to one of the marina’s ideally suited buildings on Saturday to take in a variety of networking and interactive drum sessions with percussion instruments of all shapes and sizes.

The Wood Family of Crofton brought son Mitchell along with fellow drummer pal Matthew Bauckman to gain some insight from the professionals. Both boys, students at Crofton Middle School, have full drum sets and nicely insulated basements where they like to make a little noise.

The family was enthused with the depth of experience and knowledge that was offered to kids and adults alike at this free session where food was shared and friendships were made.

The crowd swayed to the rhythms of conga player Mark Merella. Benjamin Cowan, Parliament Funkadelic drummer (who often accompanies well-known artist George Clinton), did his drumming thing for the eager crowd tapping their toes.

Talent after talent took to the drums. Cowan followed studio drummer, Nucleo Vega, who offered his top-notch instruction materials for sale to the audience. Tips from Vega’s books, touted by Drum! magazine as among the best of the best, were put into play and relished by all. Check him out at www.nucleovega.com.

Baltimore professional drummer, Brian Rodgers, was down for the day with friends and family, including grandson David Byrd, a student at Sudbury Magnet School and a member of the school’s Jazz band. “I play drums, piano and do a little singing, too,” he said.

Drumstock’s question-and-answer session reiterated that Cowan and other professional drummers “got good” not just because they “kept on doing chops all day long.” He said for him, becoming a good drummer is about “finding your groove, moving that body to build up muscle memory, and pleasing the other members of the group you are playing with at the time."

Successful drum playing is much more than tap, tap tapping on the skins. It’s really a combination of music for the whole band, complementing the other instruments and knowing when too much is too much. It can be a fine line.

Music business expert, Nick Costa, closed out the pre-jam session with some food for thought for the wanna-be performers and to those already in the drum world looking to be hired handily for those hot gigs: “If you can’t do it with a smile, someone else will.” And, “You can be the baddest guy in town or the busiest guy in town.”

Finding your fit and fitting in were important tips, above and beyond handling the drumsticks and cymbals like a pro.